Lead Visual Designer

About the role

We are reimagining Yahoo Games as a modern casual gaming destination with a strong point of view on quality, craft, and player experience. A Lot About You We are seeking a talented Lead Artist (Games) to establish, create, and evolve the visual identity for Yahoo Games first-party original games as well as provide feedback on third party games.

Responsibilities

• Own and define the visual direction for Yahoo Games first-party titles, establishing a distinctive visual identity that aligns with the Yahoo brand.
• Create high-quality game art assets, including UI elements, environments, characters, icons, and animations.
• Explore and experiment with AI-assisted tools to support rapid concepting, visual exploration, and early-stage asset creation.
• Leverage AI to accelerate prototyping and generate visual variations, helping the team quickly test different stylistic directions.
• Evaluate emerging AI tools that can improve creative workflows and asset production efficiency across the game development pipeline.
• Partner closely with Game Design, Product Management, and Product Design to shape the game experience from concept through launch.
• Work closely with the Game Producer and Engineering team to ensure art assets integrate smoothly into builds and production pipelines.
• Manage and guide contract artists and external partners, providing clear direction and maintaining a high bar for visual quality.
• Ensure art assets are optimized for performance across desktop and mobile web platforms.
• Support promotional and marketing art in collaboration with Marketing, Growth, and Yahoo Design Studio.
• Contribute to playtests and reviews, providing feedback on visual clarity, usability, and overall player experience.
• Provide visual feedback on third-party games and help maintain a consistent quality bar across the Yahoo Games platform.

Requirements

• 5+ years of professional experience as a game artist, visual designer, or similar role in the games industry.
• Extensive experience working on casual games, ideally for desktop and mobile web platforms.
• Strong portfolio demonstrating visual direction, game art, UI design, and production-ready assets.
• Deep proficiency with Figma, Adobe Illustrator, and Photoshop.
• Experience creating both static and animated assets.
• Strong understanding of UI design principles and usability best practices.
• Familiarity with asset optimization, performance considerations, and production pipelines.
• Experience collaborating with cross-functional teams including product, engineering, and design.
• Experience working with external studios or contract artists.
• Deep interest in casual games and a strong point of view on what makes game art feel polished, approachable, and fun.
• Excellent communication, collaboration, and feedback skills.

Qualifications

• Must have a bachelor's degree in fine arts, graphic design, or a related field.
• Must have a proven track record of delivering high-quality game art assets.
• Must have a strong understanding of game design principles and user interface design.
• Must have experience working with AI-assisted tools and production pipelines.
• Must have experience managing external artists and partners.
• Must have a passion for casual games and a strong sense of visual storytelling.

Skills

• Strong visual storytelling skills.
• Proficiency in Figma, Adobe Illustrator, and Photoshop.
• Experience with motion tools (e.g., After Effects, Spine, Lottie, Rive).
• Experience with AI-assisted tools for rapid concepting and asset creation.
• Ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams.
• Experience working with external studios or contract artists.
• Strong understanding of UI design principles and usability best practices.
• Experience with asset optimization and performance considerations.
• Experience with game design and production pipelines.
• Passion for casual games and a strong point of view on game art.

Benefits

At Yahoo, we offer flexible hybrid work options that our employees love! While most roles don’t require regular office attendance, you may occasionally be asked to attend in-person events or team sessions. You’ll always get notice to make arrangements. Your recruiter will let you know if a specific job requires regular attendance at a Yahoo office or facility. If you have any questions about how this applies to the role, just ask the recruiter!

Pay

The compensation for this position ranges from $128,250.00 - $266,875.00/yr and will vary depending on factors such as your location, skills and experience.

Schedule

Our compensation package may also include incentive compensation opportunities in the form of discretionary annual bonus or commissions.